Daask

Daask

Homebase

Founded

988 YK

Disbanded

Currently in operation

Alignment

Neutral Evil

Leader(s)

See Spoilers below.

Daask is a criminal organization that has recently begun to spread across Breland and Aundair. Using violence and intimidation to carve out a niche in the underworld, the group is composed almost exclusively of monsters from Droaam. Rumors say that Sora Katra is the mastermind behind this group. In common, the name would translate to "The Monster's Eye". [1]

First appearing in Sharn in 988YK, they quickly spread to Wroat, Passage, Starilaskur, Ghalt, Lathleer and Fairhaven in the five years that followed, with Fairhaven being their most recent endeavor. In each city they operate only in the most lawless areas, and they are primarily engaged in protection rackets, loan sharking and illicit alchemical substances. Their bases are renovated Dhakaani Empire subterranean strongholds, to which outsiders are almost never permitted access. Instead, each Daask cell has one location above ground where one of their spokespersons can be found. In Sharn, this is Shamukaar in Khyber's Gate, a tavern and butcher shop for Droaam refugees.

Contents

Most of their members are Gnolls, Shifters and Orcs, with Ogres, Worgs, Minotaurs, Tieflings and Gargoyles making up the rest of their numbers. Harpies, War Trolls, Medusas, Lycanthropes and several kinds of trained feral monsters are available for special occasions, though the threat of their potential involvement alone has proven an effective intimidation tool in its own right. The exact composition of a Daask cell varies based upon the city; in Sharn, an unusually large amount of Harpies and Gargoyles are present. The leader of a Daask cell can be of any race, but they are always imposing individuals.

The protection racket is what they are altogether best known for, and they make good on their promises surprisingly often. Most of the violence Daask commits targets other criminal groups, and as they operate only in the most lawless areas many have begun appreciating their fair but harsh justice.

As loan sharks, they offer the raw gold of Droaam's mines to those in need. To ensure swift repayment, they often demand collateral in the form of the "stone loan", where one of the borrower's family members is petrified by a Medusa. Failure to repay the debt by the due date results in a finger or toe being chipped from the statue and sent to the borrower for each missed payment. Unclaimed victims are often brought back to Droaam, where they are auctioned off to the highest bidder to make up for lost revenue.

The trade in illicit alchemical substances is where Daask buts heads with other criminal organisations the most, as they compete for the same markets. Aside from long-time junkie favourites such as dreamlily, Daask also offers one mysterious product no other organization does: Dragon's Blood, a highly addictive substance which enhances arcane magic. Several influential members of society have become addicted to this substance, and as Daask is the only organization which can supply it, this has become an additional level of influence for the group.

Anyone studying Daask for a prolonged time will notice that many of their actions show too much thought and foresight, some of their activities only hitting an enemy months after the fact, and sometimes in a different city altogether. The reason for this is that Daask is guided by one hand: that of Sora Katra.

Each cell leader owns a scying crystal that puts them in direct contact with Sora Katra whenever she wishes. She knows who owes Daask gold, she knows who uses Dragon's Blood, and she uses this knowledge to slowly but surely manipulate events across the east on a massive scale. Slowly but surely her agents are crippling the established criminal guilds, and once they are through with them Daask will have free reign in the east's seedy underbelly.

Daask is expert at manipulation, and there's no telling how many high-placing members of society are already under their control through the threat of violence (against them, or a petrified loved one) or the threat of being cut off from their Dragon's Blood supply forever.

Each member of Daask is an elite soldier, chosen more for intelligence than for anything else. The ogre enforcers may seem like brutes, but it is all a carefully constructed facade. When circumstances demand it a Daask cell pulls together with all the precision of a military strike team, and they have an immensely diverse set of monstrous abilities to pull from. With all the resources of Droaam behind them, their operatives are often armed with magic items, artifacts and oracular insight to boot.

So far, Dragon's Blood has defied all analysis; somehow, one of the ingredients is known only to the Daughters of Sora Kell. It is unlikely to be actual dragon blood, and the exact effects vary by user and by dosage.